Barkathon2017

Barkathon2017 We love our canine companions, but barking from some dogs can be a nuisance. In fact, barking dog complaints represent one of the largest service request types for Ipswich City Council!  Traditional ways of addressing barking dog complaints can be resource intensive treated on a case-by-case basis, and interventions can inconsistent or short-term fixes. We invite you to help us discover and develop solutions that will benefit dog owners, their neighbours and the wider community through technology and innovation. Are there new ways to capture grievances? What tools can we put in the hands of our residents? Are there new technologies, platforms, or applications we can introduce that would make it easier for customers? What else can we and our systems do to help make people’s lives in our cities more connected and enabled to enrich quality of life? Barkathon2017 is the concept of using ideas and technology to fix the pesky problem of noisy dogs via a 48-hour weekend hackathon. Ipswich City Council has partnered with Fire Station 101 to connect entrepreneurs, developers and environmentalists with a unique opportunity to create a digital solution to solve the barking dog problem. This Hackathon is open to any individuals or groups with a great idea, and with the passion and motivation to make it happen. Winner/s will receive up to $30,000 in product development funding plus mentoring support to grow their idea through a Fire Station 101 Innovation Hub membership. Once the product is developed and launched, the winner/s will retain intellectual property ownership and will be enabled to further commercialise their product with Ipswich City Council becoming their first customer. Join us at Fire Station 101 for a unique 48-hour collaboration opportunity as Ipswich City Council offers technologies and data to hack a solution and possibly even start a new business! What to expect We begin the weekend on Friday evening with dinner and networking, followed by presenting the challenge and forming teams around ideas.   Some teams will come in already knowing each other, and other teams will find each other on the night. What follows will be 48 hours of developing business models, designing, maybe coding, building, and engaging actual customers to validate your ideas. Build networks and relationships: You will work alongside people from diverse skills and experience in a supportive community focused on helping each other achieve outcomes. Mentor support: You will be supported by mentors from diverse backgrounds including successful entrepreneurs, IT, animal management, data, and more. Actual Data: You will have access to council data related to animal management and community data Learning support: Education sessions will run Saturday and Sunday to provide tips and tricks on business models, development of minimum viable products, customer engagement, and pitching. Food!: Great quality meals and drinks provided through the weekend to keep you fuelled and caffeinated. Limited Edition T-shirt and a water bottle The weekend will wrap up with a pitch to expert guest judges who will decide on the project selected for funding for the next stage of development. You bring the ideas and the energy, we provide the space, mentors, data, food, and drink through the weekend. Come along to not only help our community and our pets but start a new globally scalable business in the process! Registrations essential About Ipswich City Council Located 40 minutes from Brisbane with a population of 200,000, Ipswich is the fastest growing region in Queensland.  Ipswich is leading the way in smart technology, ranked as one of the Top 7 Intelligent Communities of the world as assessed by the New York-based smart cities think tank, the Intelligent Communities Forum (ICF). About Fire Station 101 Fire Station 101 helps entrepreneurs build, grow, and scale their ideas to ignite innovation in Ipswich and beyond.  We bring together mentors, investors, corporate partners, volunteers, and service providers all focused on one thing: the entrepreneur’s success. An initiative of Ipswich City Council, we are passionate about impacting our local community with solutions that can scale globally. KEEN TO FIND OUT MORE? Come along to our Barkathon2017 Info & Ideation Night on Tuesday 28 November 2017 from 6 – 8 pm Register HERE for the Ideation Night